Why Time Management Is Crucial in Freelancing

When you’re working as a freelancer, you manage your own time, follow your own schedule, and do things at your own pace. You have all the time in the world, that’s what you always think. But if projects begin to pile up, you’d realize that just like everyone else, you only have 24 hours in a day -- and not all those hours are meant for working.

Being your own boss, how your day would go is all up to you. Since that’s the case, is time management still a big deal? Yes, definitely.

Time Management for Freelancers

Time management could be done in a breeze if the projects you’re working on are not demanding. But if you need to squeeze in too many tasks in a day, plotting a schedule will solve your problem.

You can use time management techniques like what regular office employees use. It’s just a bit tricky since you can be dealing with two or more clients in a day who have different deadlines and demands.

Estimate how many hours of work is needed today. You can work early in the morning for four hours straight, have a midday break for as long as you like, and get back to your tasks before dark crawls in.

Importance of Time Management

On your income:

If you are paid by the number of hours tracked and you spend time on non-billable tasks (emailing, invoicing, following up) more than you should, imagine how many hours “at work” are unpaid.

On the quality of your project:

Not having sufficient time on important tasks can cause you to cram and rush things until the deadline, which could leave room for errors. Spend less non-billable time and learn how to dismiss or deal with distractions while working.

On your reputation:

Consequently, your reputation might suffer if you keep on delivering low-quality projects. Don’t use your lack of time as an excuse.

On your relationship with clients:

A substandard output might cause employers to think twice about hiring you again on their future projects. Remote collaboration is built on trust. When you say you can do it, employers will trust you on that so make sure you walk the talk.

Smart Time Tracking

A freelance personal finance journalist shared why it’s imperative to find out how you’re spending your time. Tracking your time is an indispensable part of working on projects big or small.

Time tracking apps are essential especially if you charge per hour. A time tracker helps you value your time more because you know how much you are worth.

The Freelancer Desktop App makes it easier for you to track your time. And since it automatically creates invoices for the hours you’ve tracked, you won’t have to worry about incurring unpaid hours. With the app, your skills, time, and effort won’t be put to waste.

How much you charge also has an effect on how you will manage your time. If you don’t make enough money to make ends meet no matter how long you work in a day, think about adjusting your per-hour rate.